Beneath the orbits and atoms of our natural universe lies a network of dark energy. Those who have learned to access and navigate this chaotic sea have discovered an almost endless set of “recursions” in the shoals of our Earth: Worlds with their own laws of reality, reflected from human experience or imagination, given form in the swirling Chaosphere of the Strange. Worlds teeming with life, with discovery, with incredible treasures, and with sudden death.

Worlds sometimes jealous of our own.

The Strange gameplay involves a simple d20 roll that determines success or failure for any kind of action. To avoid a lot of cumbersome math at the game table, there are very rarely modifiers to this roll. Instead, skills and other assets reduce the difficulty of a task. More importantly, players can choose tasks to focus upon, using a limited resource called effort to further lower the difficulty of the actions really important to them.

The game system itself is designed to be quick and easy for beginners, while offering additional complexity for those who desire it. To start with, character creation involves making three basic choices.

First you choose one of three TYPES:

Vectors are the muscle of setting. Vectors can wear armor and wield massive weapons, or they can fight with light weapons—including the fists, elbows, and knees. But vectors aren’t about combat, strictly. They’re about action. They are the kind of people who get things done.

Paradoxes are the mad scientists, the sorcerers, and those who break the rules of reality. Whether using science, the power of the mind, spells, or something else entirely, a paradox is not bound by what others believe to be true. These characters tap into the Strange itself in ways that other characters do not.

Spinners are striking individuals, and possess a personality that allows them to spin tales, spin lies, or spin a version of the truth that makes others see things in a whole new way. If anyone is going to make a friend of an enemy, bluff their way into a high security compound, or mislead a world-devouring planetovore, it’s a spinner.

Second, you choose from a number of DESCRIPTORS such as Appealing, Fast, Sharp-Eyed, Brash, Skeptical, or Strange. A descriptor flavors everything your character does.

Third you choose a FOCUS, which really distinguishes your character. However, your focus changes based on the nature of the recursion you translate yourself to. On Earth, you might have a focus like Works the System, or Is Licensed to Carry, but on Ardeyn your character adapts to that world’s reality and its rules. So now your focus is Slays Dragons or Abides in Stone. On Ruk, you might take on Metamorphosizes or Regenerates Tissue or even something subtler, like Infiltrates.

I am a [DESCRIPTOR] [TYPE] who [FOCUS].

In other words, DESCRIPTOR is an adjective, TYPE is a noun, and FOCUS is a verb. So you might say, “I am a Brash Vector who Looks for Trouble.” Or perhaps “I am a Skeptical Paradox who Solves Mysteries.” Or even, “I am a Clever Spinner who Works the System.” This means that foci always have interestingly constructed names like, “Conducts Weird Science,” or “Metamorphosizes.” It’s odd at first, but once you’re used to it, it’s fun.

These three choices help shape your character, providing not only abilities and skills but also possibilities for interesting backgrounds and unique bonds with the other player characters. In other words, at every step of the way, the story is as important as the mechanics.

Type and descriptor, then, become your character’s core. Even while equipment, abilities, and appearance change from recursion to recursion, that core identity remains the same. This means that focus is less your identity and more how you interact with the world—whichever world it is—around you.